Kale Salad with Tahini Yogurt Dressing

It’s the New Year! A study done last year suggested that
healthy eating was one of the top three resolutions for 2018, and nothing says “healthy
eating” quite like kale.

Stay with me here.

Plain raw kale, although palatable for me, is understandably
bitter and revolting for a good chunk of people I know. The good news is, it
doesn’t have to be eaten that way! As with most vegetables and leafy greens, I
find that they always taste better if not exceptional
when properly and pleasantly spiced, dressed, and/or cooked.

This past month, I decided to subscribe to a free trail of
NYT Cooking, mostly because I wanted some classic cookie recipes for the
holidays. In doing so, I started receiving email newsletters every few days,
and within these newsletters, the editor (Sam Sifton) provides a recipe minus
exact ingredients and super clear instructions. About a week ago, the day after
I churned out 10 dozen cookies and a heaping pile of almond bark-dipped pretzels,
Sam offered up a kale salad recipe. Seeing as I needed to cut through all that
butter and sugar in my gut, I bought the ingredients and gave it a shot.

The results were phenomenal. I’ve made the salad twice now
within the last week, and the icing on the cake (maybe a bad metaphor here),
without a doubt, is the tahini yogurt dressing. The kale becomes the winning
element when coated in the stuff. I also thoroughly enjoy the compliments of
cool crunchy cucumber, bright tangy grapefruit, and warm crispy chickpeas. Top
that with a handful of fresh herbs, and ding!
ding! ding! we have a winner!

This works well as a light meal, but I can definitely see it
paired with a pork chop or, better yet, black-eyed peas and ham to ring in the
New Year!

Ingredients:

Kale, bite-sized pieces

1 grapefruit, sectioned

1/2 cucumber, diced

Fresh herbs, chopped **

1 Lemon (used for juicing)

1/2 can chickpeas, drained

Plain yogurt (I used Greek, but the original recipe called
for regular)

Tahini

Salt

Olive oil

**I used basil only—the fresh herb supply was short at the
store. However, I think a combination of basil, dill, parsley and maybe even a
dash of mint would be stellar.

(Unconventional,
Vague) Directions:

First, credit where credit is due—paragraphs two through
four. My feelings won’t be hurt if you just stop here and follow Sam’s more
succinct “instructions”: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/21/dining/what-to-cook-this-weekend-newsletter.html

For the dressing, you’ll need the yogurt, tahini, lemon, and
salt. Since there are no exact measurements, you’ll have to rely heavily on
your taste buds to create a tasty concoction. More or less, I used two large dollops
of yogurt, two and a half spoons full of tahini, three generous splashes of
olive oil, a couple generous squeezes of lemon juice, and probably about 1/8
tsp of salt. My recommendation is to add ingredients one spoonful, splash or
squeeze at a time, stir, and taste. You’ll know when it’s just the right
combination of savory, tangy and salty. The original recipe said to create a
Caesar dressing consistency, but I never made it there due to the Greek
yogurt’s extra thick texture. I found this thickness coated the kale leaves
well, however.

Chop up your kale, discarding the hard stems if desired. In
a large mixing bowl, “massage” plenty of dressing into the kale with your hands
until the leaves are well coated. If you’ve ever had the Caesar salad at
Lazlo’s, that’s about the dressing-to-greens ratio you want—right at that “Would
you like some salad with your dressing?” level.

Set the kale aside to marinate. Heat a small frying pan with
a generous swirl of olive oil on the stovetop. Once it’s toasty hot, turn the
heat down to medium-low, grab a grease-spatter screen, and toss half a can of
chickpeas into the pan. They will sizzle like crazy, so slap that screen on top
as quick as you can. Instead of stirring the beans, I occasionally took the pan
off the stovetop and tossed them around with the screen held firmly on top—way
less mess that way.

While the chickpeas are sizzling, section your grapefruit,
dice up half a cucumber, and chop your herbs. By the time all this is done,
your chickpeas should be browned and crispy.

Serve the dressed kale in individual bowls and artistically
top with grapefruit, cucumber, chickpeas, and herbs. Or, in typical Hannah
fashion, toss it all together in the mixing bowl and eat it straight out of
there while binge-watching Chef’s Table on Netflix. No one said healthy eating
had to be done formally.

Happy New Year, everyone!

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